Stomach

Stress causes the nutrients in the food to be absorbed insufficiently.photo by stockimages

Eating while under stress causes the nutrients in the food to be absorbed insufficiently. Moreover chronic stress alters the following natural processes:

amount of gastric secretions produced by the stomach,

gut motility,

mucosal permeability & barrier function,

visceral sensitivity and mucosal blood flow.

Chronic stress can also cause gut-related issues like:

gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD),

peptic ulcer disease,

IBD,

IBS,

and food allergies.

Intestines

Stress can impact our intestine immensely and could lead to:

decreased nutrient absorption,

decreased oxygenation to the gut,

four times less blood flow to our digestive parts,

and decreased enzymatic output by as much as 20,000-fold.

Stress can damage delicate tissue in the gut leading to multiple inflammatory diseases like:

multiple sclerosis (MS),

type 1 diabetes,

rheumatoid arthritis,

osteoarthritis,

lupus,

regional enteritis,

ulcerative colitis,

chronic skin conditions,

kidney problems,

urinary conditions,

allergic and atopic conditions,

degenerative conditions,

chronic fatigue syndrome,

fibromyalgia,

and a variety of other inflammatory bowel disease.

Reproductive System

Stress decreases fertility and sexual drive. Stress hormones lower the levels of gonadotropin (GnRH) which is the body’s main sex hormone. At the same time it boosts levels of GnIH that suppresses GnRH even further.

Chronic stress also causes a drop in fertility. Women who have tried to get pregnant during stressful times have had very little success. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule. Hethir Rodriguez C.H., C.M.T. explains:

“Believe it or not, our bodies are equipped to prevent conception from occurring during times of extreme stress. The presence of adrenalin, the hormone that is released by our bodies during stressful times, signals to our body that conditions are not ideal for conception. Adrenaline inhibits us from utilizing the hormone progesterone, which is essential for fertility. It also causes the pituitary gland to release higher levels of prolactin, which also causes infertility to occur.”

Immune System

Stress releases corticosteroids that suppress the effectiveness of the immune system by lowering the number of lymphocytes white blood cells which are an integral part of the immune system leaving us more susceptible to infections.

Chronic stress makes the cells of the immune system unable to respond to hormonal control, subsequently leading to high levels of inflammation that promote disease.

There is no way anyone can avoid stress. However we can limit the damage it can cause to our bodies. That’s why next week we will talk about stress management.